


Eight Days of Glanukah

by hermioneclone



Series: Jews on Glee [1]
Category: Glee
Genre: Canon Jewish Character, Chanukah, Drabble Collection, Gen, Hanukkah, Jewish Holidays, Jewish Identity, Judaism, LGBTQ Jewish Character(s), POV Jewish Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-19
Updated: 2014-12-23
Packaged: 2018-03-01 16:48:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2780513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hermioneclone/pseuds/hermioneclone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eight nights. Eight stories. Follow the Jews of Glee through the years as they celebrate the Festival of Lights.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Light One Candle (Hiram and LeRoy)

**Author's Note:**

> I've been wanting to write a Jewish Glee story for a while now and when I realized that this was as good a time as any to do it while Glee was still on the air and I couldn't pass up this opportunity. Some bits are drawn from my own experiences, some are just kinda general and shouldn't be read as a complete relic of Jewish experience. But I'd love if people who might not otherwise know much about the holiday can learn something about it through this fic. I'll be including some links along the way if you're interested. Also I'm trying to take the chapter titles from different Chanukah songs, some more traditional than others. This is Glee after all! Today's song is Peter, Paul and Mary's [Light One Candle](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1cRXgDFiSs).
> 
> This is my first time writing with some of these characters and I hope I did them justice.  
> Enjoy and Chag Sameach!
> 
> Links:
> 
> [Lighting the Menorah](http://judaism.about.com/od/holidays/a/How-To-Light-The-Hanukkah-Menorah.htm)  
> [Have a fun video to hear the prayers as sung (with bonus Maoz Tzur song!)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kb7q7ztFOPc)  
> [Have a slightly less fun but informative video!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3a2__RZh0ZU)
> 
>  

“You ready for this?” Hiram asked, hugging LeRoy from behind. He snuggled into the crook of his partner’s neck, inhaling the spicy scent of his cologne, ignoring the way his glasses were pushed askew by the awkward position.

“Of course I’m ready,” LeRoy replied, sounding put out to anyone but Hiram who had learned all the intricacies of LeRoy’s tones over the past few years. “Our first Chanukah since I converted. I know it’s not the most important holiday on the Jewish calendar, but so far it has been the most delicious. At least we get to eat fried potatoes not matzah.”

Hiram snorted into his partner’s sweater. “Always a plus there.” They stood in silence for a few minutes, wrapped in each other’s warmth. “You know, you didn’t have to convert.”

“Now you tell me,” LeRoy sighed dramatically, but Hiram could hear the smile in his voice.

“No, I mean...it’s not like we can get married or anything, and that’s when it would matter technically…” The words hung heavy in the air, the possibility of legal recognition so unthinkable that they rarely brought it up.

“Sweetie, we talked about this,” LeRoy interrupted him turning around the face his partner. “I didn’t convert for you, I did it for me. Look, your congregation has been the kindest religious organization to me since I came out. And I know that even that is an incredible stroke of luck because I know not every synagogue is as open as ours. But this is where I feel at home, where I feel at peace. And married or not, we’re talking about kids, right?” Hiram nodded. “Well then, I don’t want there to be any doubt that our children grew up in a Jewish household.”

Hiram fought back the tears that prickled at his eyes; he didn’t want them fogging up his glasses and ruining the moment. He swallowed down the lump in his throat as he gazed into LeRoy’s warm brown eyes. “I love you so much,” he confessed, holding on for dear life.

“You’d better, I got circumcised for you,” LeRoy reminded him dryly. Grinning widely, Hiram closed the distance between them and captured his partner’s lips, trying to pour all of his love into that one small gesture. “Alright, enough of this, let’s get to the candles,” LeRoy reminded him as he pulled out of the kiss.

They walked over to the counter where Hiram’s grandmother’s menorah rested, polished in all of it’s silver glory, one lone candle sitting all the way in the right hand side, it’s only company the shamash in the center. LeRoy picked up the shamash and held it out to Hiram to light, his partner wincing at the sizzle of the flame. Hiram usually made LeRoy light matches because of his pyrophobia; the gesture meant a lot even if LeRoy was already resolved to take over the lighting duties after tonight.

 _“Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech HaOlam, asher kidshanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu l’hadlik ner shel Hanukkah.”_ LeRoy chanted the first prayer, Hiram’s voice gently tangling with his, guiding him as needed. He lit the first night’s candle before melting the bottom of the shamash a little with its flame so that it would stay in place. “ _Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech HaOlam, she’asah nisim l’avoteinu, b’yamim haheim bazman hazeh.”_

 _“Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech HaOlam, shehekheyanu, v’kiyamanu vehegianu lazman hazeh,”_ he finished, saying the prayer said for special occasions.

“I couldn’t have said it any better myself,” Hiram whispered in his ear, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek. “Come on, we’ve got lots of latkes, let’s go eat ‘em up.”

~~~

The prayers translated in the order they were recited in are as follows:  
  
Blessed are You, O Lord Our God, Ruler of the Universe, Who has sanctified us with Your commandments and commanded us to kindle the lights of Hanukkah.  
  
Blessed are You, O Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, Who made miracles for our forefathers in those days at this time.  
  
Blessed are You, O Lord Our God, Ruler of the Universe, Who has kept us alive, sustained us and brought us to this season.  
  



	2. Goyim Friends (Puck)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title comes from the song by the same name by [The LeeVees](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYSQ6eavfak). It actually fit startlingly well. 
> 
> Fun Fact! Chanukah isn't actually about presents! ;-)

“Hey, dude, so some of the guys are getting together tonight, gonna play some videogames and order a few pizzas, wanna join?” Finn asked as he tossed his lunch tray casually on the table next to Puck. “It’s gonna be epic.”

“Sorry, man. I got plans,” Puck replied vaguely.

“You got a date?” Finn asked shoving a handful of fries into his mouth, a hint of ketchup streaking his face.

“Nah, it’s just, um, it’s Chanukah, you know? Mom wants me stay home, my Nan’s coming over and all that.”

“That’s cool. Family is important. I get it. Halo isn’t going anywhere.”

“Thanks,” Puck sighed thankfully, devouring his cheeseburger.

“Hanukkah must be so cool,” Finn continued. “You get like eight nights of presents, right!?”

“Riiight,” Puck agreed reluctantly.

“You’re so lucky.”

Lucky. Sure, they still had a roof over their heads and enough food to eat. They were lucky. But his mother always had to work twice as hard to support him and his sister. How most years their gifts consisted of socks and underwear and various other items that his mother had bought earlier in the year when they needed them and then would sneak out of their rooms to wrap so they would have something to open. He couldn’t help but think jealously of the bounty he was sure his best friend got every year. Even though he knew that Finn’s mom struggled too, there was one less mouth to feed and a little more to go around. He didn’t care so much about the stuff (okay, yeah, maybe on some level he did) but it was more the fact that people just had no idea what Chanukah was actually about.

But Puck didn’t say anything. He smiled back at his best friend, his mouth forming a tight line as he stayed quiet, knowing that Finn wouldn’t understand.


	3. Ma'oz Tzur (Jake)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song is [Ma'oz Tzur (Rock of Ages)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gADDmP2UA5I).
> 
> A more straightforward explanation of [the Chanukah Story](http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday7.htm).  
> The greeting card which inspired [Puck's retelling](https://gruvenreuven.wordpress.com/2011/12/15/the-chanukah-story-sort-of/).  
> Also a [Star Wars Chanukah special ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hjTEKLD-AM) which is beautiful and felt appropriate to share here.

Jake smiled to himself as he devoured the roast beef sandwich he ordered at the seedy little diner he and Puck stopped at on their way back to Lima. He flexed his legs under the table a bit; they were getting a bit cramped from riding in the sidecar for so many hours.

“What’re you so happy about?” his brother asked around a mouthful of burger and fries.

“Nothing,” Jake reacted instinctively, ducking his head in embarrassment.

“Hey, I’m your brother. You can’t hide shit from me, especially good shit. What’s up?”

“I’m excited, that’s all. This will be my first real Chanukah.”

Puck frowned at him, tilting his head slightly in confusion. “I thought you said your mom raised you Jewish?”

Jake shrugged, feeling a wave of self-consciousness wash over him. “Yeah, well, she did her best but it’s not like she knew what she was doing. She’s not that religious so she just kinda did the basics. I mean, we lit lights but we kinda did it all at once and it didn’t really make much sense to me. And we got some frozen hash brown things and made those. It’ll be nice to know what you’re actually supposed to do and all that, you know?”

“Yeah, it will,” Puck agreed.

“While we’re on the subject,” Jake continued as he took a crunchy bite out of his pickle. “So what’s the deal with the lights and the oil and all that?”

“Okay, so here’s the deal.” Puck began. “Way back in like the dark ages or something the Greeks took over the land where the Jews were living and at first they were all cool with it and some Jews started acting Greek, but then there was this asshole Antiochus who came to power and he wanted to start forcing people to be Greek. So a lot of people hid their Jewish stuff and played with dreidels so when the Greek guys would come around they pretended just to be playing a game instead of studying Torah. But there were a bunch of people who said hell no and hid out in the mountains to plot their rebellion. So this guy, Judah MacCabee, was their leader and a total badass, and they took out Antiochus, which made everyone really happy because he was a royal ass. Get it?” Jake snorted, wanting to give his brother a responsive audience. “Anyways, you’d think they’d be happy, right? But nope. While the Jews were busy fleeing, the Greeks had seriously fucked up the temple, they like sacrificed pigs in there and shit like that. So they started making the temple holy again, only they didn’t have enough oil for the lamp that was supposed to burn like all the time and it’d take like a week to get fresh stuff they could actually use. But then that little bit of oil lasted for eight days, they called it a miracle, and now we celebrate by deep frying everything you can think of.”

“Wow, is any of that actually real?” Jake asked, skeptical of the veracity of such divine intervention.

Puck shrugged. “Is any of the crap we celebrate ever based all on facts? I think what’s more important is that it’s celebrating our right to be Jews even if other people tell us we shouldn’t. And besides, any holiday that means I can stuff my face is one I can be on board with.”

“Me too,” Jake agreed, grinning happily, excited beyond measure at the prospect of what this new experience would bring.

“Alright, ready to get back on the road? Sooner we get back the sooner we can whip out my Nana’s latke recipe and I can show you what a real potato pancake tastes like.”


	4. Mi Yimalel (Shelby and Beth)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's song is Mi Yimalel. Click [here](http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Jewish_Holidays/Hanukkah/At_Home/hanukkah-songs/mi-yimalel.shtml%20lyrics) for lyrics/translation, [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frPZLNgxEHk) for it done in a round, [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsY0qJduFN8) for an interesting rendition done by schoolchildren, and [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=cdCfdOcTcTA#t=75) for a version that includes the English lyrics (sorry for the poor quality, it was the best I could find).

“Mail! Mail! Mail!” Beth shrieked as she ran circles around her mother, her mittens dangling off her coat and fluttering in her wake. Shelby carefully balanced the small box in her arms as she tried to set down her purse, get something to open the box, and not step on her daughter all at the same time.

“Calm down, sweetie, I know you’re excited, but just give Mommy a minute, alright?” she practically begged. Beth was just about to turn six in a few months and she was just so full of energy. Usually it made her mother beam with pride but right now she was exhausted after several virtually sleepless nights and long days at work. She really needed to give Rachel a call and see if she would be willing to babysit just to get a chance to recharge and reset.

Shelby looked at the return address before she dug her keys out of her pocket to open the packing tape. It was from Puck. She was still getting used to this. Once he and Quinn had gotten back together (and soon after were engaged), they had reached out to her about being in contact with Beth. College had done Quinn a world of good; Shelby no longer feared that she would try to take Beth away anymore, though she couldn’t help but remember the young woman’s bitterness. They visited when they could, though with Puck being in the Air Force he moved around a lot, so they saw him most through Skype calls. Quinn came by more often, the trip from New Haven not horribly impossible on a semi-regular basis. They had come to a kind of balance, a bizarre, non-traditional kind of family. Beth understood that Puck and Quinn were her parents, but Shelby was still her Mommy and for that she couldn’t help but be grateful.

“Who sent it Mommy?” Beth demanded, jumping up and down frantically.

“Puck and Quinn,” Shelby told her, pulling out a card. “It looks like it’s an early Chanukah present.”

Beth’s face fell. “Does that mean I have to wait?”

Shelby frowned thoughtfully as she picked up the card, which had a sticky note on it saying _Open me now!_ “Looks like they thought ahead. Come on, lets see what the card says.” She set the package down on the counter before lifting Beth to sit right next to it. Her daughter started playing with the edges of the cardboard box. Shelby waved the envelope in her face, causing Beth to pull her hands back as if they had been burned, a look of innocence plastered on her face like she knew she had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. “Card first,” Shelby reminded her. The blue and gold design was pretty generic; Chanukah cards were never very creative. Still, it was a nice gesture. “Do you want to try to read it?” she asked Beth, holding the card out to her.

“Okay!” Beth pulled the paper into her hands, opening it excitedly. “Hah-appy Ch-ch… Mommy?”

“Chanukah. Like you’re clearing your throat. Chhha.”

“Chanukah. Beth. Hey, that’s me!”

“That’s you sweetie,” Shelby replied, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head.

“We love you very much.” She frowned down in frustration. “Can you read the rest Mommy?”

“Of course. Alright. Here is something to help you and Mommy celebrate. Love, Puck and Quinn.”

“Can I open it now?”

Shelby pushed the package towards her. “Go ahead.” Beth pulled out a [white bear](http://thumbs3.ebaystatic.com/d/l225/m/mez113f9csKK50DPyhN7j5g.jpg) wearing a blue yarmulke with a menorah plastered across its chest. She squeezed its hand and then squealed as the shamash lit up. She squeezed again and another light turned on. “How cute is that?”

“Very.” Beth declared. “I love it.”

“We should write them a nice thank you note.”

Beth sighed heavily. “Do I have to?”

“Yes, sweetie. You’ll thank me some day. Also I know that they love getting notes from you.”

“Okay Mommy.”

“That’s my girl.”


	5. Chanukah, Oh Chanukah! (Rachel)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know that Glee did a [cover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTokUy48Da8) of this song but it's not my favorite (also they say like "s'vonvin" in stead of "sivivon" which is how I've always heard it pronounced. Maybe it's another way to say it but I'm suspicious. So here is a [version](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxH0xF84h_0) that has Yiddish, English and I believe the last part is in Hebrew. A little of everything!

Rachel loved Chanukah. Not only did it mean lots of delicious food, but it meant that she and her dads would put on their annual Chanukah spectacular in their basement. It was a real hit with her relatives, especially as she approached ten years of age and was starting to acquire a firmer grasp on her vocals.

But the opportunity to perform wasn’t by far her favorite part, and that was saying something.

Her favorite part was hunting for gelt. Every year it magically hit itself like little waxy disc shaped afikomen and it was her task to locate every last piece. Her cousin Jeffrey had tried to convince her last year that her dads hid all the candy but she knew better. It was actually Chanukah Harry.

Jeffrey had laughed at her when she insisted on this fact, but she knew it was true. Her dads wouldn’t lie to her like that. Chanukah Harry was a woman (it was short for Harriet) who looked like the classic cartoon grandmother: full figured with a bun full of grey hair and glasses.

But she couldn’t go on the Great Gelt hunt until after her performance was done. She was a professional after all.

“Come _on_ Jeffrey,” she whined, tugging on her cousin’s sleeve. He rolled his eyes at her behind his black thick rimmed glasses, the eternal discontent of teenage years rolling off of him in waves.

“Leave me alone,” he grumbled, shrugging off her advances.

“No. You have to sing. It’s the law. Chanukah is about singing so sing,” Rachel replied matter-of-factly.

“You’re an idiot,” Jeffrey mumbled.

“I’m telling my dads you called me a bad name!”

“Whatever,” he sighed. “Look, Chanukah is about eating and the survival of our people. Not singing. You know what you can’t do when you are studying in secret? Sing. Because then you get found by the Greeks and killed. Do you want someone stabbing you with a nice sparkly sword?”

Rachel planted her hands on her hips furiously. “Well, we’re not in Greek land. We’re in Lima, Ohio and I say we sing.”

“If you wanna do it so bad you go up there and do it yourself,” Jeffrey grumbled.

“Gladly,” Rachel huffed. She marched up to the stage her dads had built and coughed loudly to get everyone’s attention. “Chanukah oh Chanukah come light the menorah!” she began singing at the top of her lungs.

“We’ll have a party and all dance the hora!” one of her dad’s chimed in, joining her on the stage.

“Gather ‘round the table, we’ll give you a treat,” her other dad added, returning to the stage to be with his family. Jeffrey just rolled his eyes again. But Rachel didn’t care anymore; when she was on stage, everything was right in her world.


	6. Jewish Girls (Jacob Ben Israel)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was probably one of the hardest ones to write; it's kinda tough trying to humanize the walking, talking stereotype (who is there for a very specific narrative reason, if you'd like to hear my thoughts on that message me on tumblr and we can talk).
> 
> The song is [Jewish Girls](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLADyyDCmrc) by the LeeVees.

Jacob sighed heavily as he scanned the crowd, looking for potential dance partners. Every year at the Chanukah party at the JCC of Greater Columbus he tried (and usually failed) to find the girl of his dreams. Sure, at McKinley he was surrounded by plenty of attractive women. Like that Quinn Fabray, hubah hubah. And yeah, he loved a shiksa goddess as much as the next self-disrespecting Jew. But as his brief infatuation with Rachel Berry had revealed, his thirst would not be quenched but with a member of the tribe.

Which was why for the past three years he had made the almost two hour drive to a community that was a world of it’s own. Yeah, Lima had it’s fair share of Jews but everyone in Lima hated him, so the anonymity was to his benefit. Theoretically at least. So far, he wasn’t having much luck here either. But Jacob was not one to take rejection easily. He spotted a clump of three girls, all bearing either tight brunette curls or oversized noses. He knew it was a stereotype, but he himself fit so neatly into such images that he felt a sort of solidarity with others like him who would be derided for their crime of being born looking too much like an Anti-Semite’s fantasy.

“Hello, ladies,” he opened, trying to stay casual. “How’re you liking the party?”

“It’s fine,” the tallest of the girls replied cautiously, casting wary glances at her companions.

“Would any of you fine specimens like to help a yid out?”

A look crossed over their faces collectively like someone had left the gefilte fish out overnight. He knew that look well; it was the look of rejection. “No thanks,” the one with the largest hair replied, clearly speaking for them all.

“Oh, okay,” he replied awkwardly. “If you change your mind…”

“We won’t,” the third girl replied harshly. “Come on Becca, Sarah.” The three scurried off, clearly trying to put distance between themselves and Jacob. Hunched over and dejected, he stumbled over to the snack table, picking several large powdered sufganyiot, taking a big bite into it, not caring as the powder and filling spilled onto his cheeks. It wouldn’t matter; he had already lost. He’d give it another fifteen minutes, but he was pretty sure he’d already approached all of the unattached women in the room.

Well, there was always college to look forward to.


	7. How Do You Spell Channukkahh?? (Artie and Tina)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a hard one to write given how little we know about these character and their links to Jewishness (at least we have a little in season 5 for Tina THANK GOODNESS). Short but sweet.
> 
> The song is [How Do You Spell Channukkahh??](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7JiDBi_v4c) by the LeeVees.

“What’s that?” Artie asked as he rolled up next to Tina’s locker, expertly maneuvering himself by his friend’s side. Tina held a gaudy blue and yellow invitation, identical to the one he had received in his locker.

“It’s for Rachel’s Chanukah party,” Tina groaned, stuffing it inside and slamming the door shut. “I don’t know if I wanna go. I’m not even really Jewish.”

“She invited Quinn too, this is kinda a multicultural affair.”

Tina shook her head. “You know what I mean.”

“Yeah, I do,” Artie agreed.

“I just feel...weird about the whole thing. Like people are going to expect me to know what’s going on.”

“Don’t look at me,” Artie shrugged. “It was mostly Santa Claus and reindeer at my house.”

They started down the hallway towards the choir room. “Do you ever wonder what it would have been like? If we were raised Jewish?”

Artie snorted. “We probably would have been dragged to these things a lot sooner.”

“I’m serious,” Tina cut him off, her voice bordering on agitated.

“Look, we can’t change how we were raised. This Jewish stuff...it’s a part of our families. It’s just not us. But that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate something that’s a part of our past even if it’s not something we see as part of our future.”

“I guess you’re right,” Tina conceded. “But if this party sucks, I’m out of there.”

“And I’ll be right there with ya,” Artie reassured her. “Come on, we’d better RSVP before Rachel decides she needs to persuade us to come.”


	8. Ocho Kandelikas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, this is it! The final night. I hope you've enjoyed reading these as much as I did writing them. If you'd like to see more, I'm hoping to write a Glee Passover fic at some point, so just subscribe and you should get an update when I post it! (Maybe around Passover, and maybe now I can plan it out more since it wasn't a last minute decision...oops.)
> 
> Here's a blog post about making [latkes](http://toriavey.com/how-to/2013/11/how-to-make-crispy-latkes/)!
> 
> This last song is Ocho Kandelikas, a song in Ladino, a Jewish language derived from medieval Spanish! Here's a bit about the woman who wrote it, [Flory Jagoda](http://tabletmag.com/podcasts/153718/flory-jagoda-ocho-kandelikas?utm_source=fb&utm_medium=post&utm_content=Sephardic+Singer+Flory+Jagoda+Keeps+the+Music+of+Her+Prewar+Bosnian+Childhood+Alive&utm_campaign=dec2014)!

“Thank you so much for coming and helping with the party prep, I don’t know how I’d get all this done by myself,” Rachel greeted as Kurt, Blaine and Finn walked inside, slipping out of their coats and hanging them on the hooks in the hall. “As you can see, I’ve done most of the decorating,” she gestured to the metallic “Happy Hannukah” banner hung amongst various streamers and lopsided balloons. Kurt snorted behind her, which she chose to ignore, and he earned a shush from Blaine, which she couldn’t help but appreciate.

“It’s our pleasure,” Blaine assured her. “I can’t wait to learn about all these traditions. You’re like my first real Jewish friend.”

“My first Jewish friend was Puck,” Finn chimed in. “But we never really talked about Jew stuff.”

“Aaanyways,” Kurt interrupted his step-brother. What do you need us to do Rach?”

“We’re going to make latkes. I decided that the donuts and chips could be store bought but you cannot buy quality latkes.” Rachel explained.

“Okay,” Finn started, clearly trying his hardest to get his facts straight. “So latkes are the unleavened bread, right?”

“No, that’s matzah. Different holiday. Latkes are fried potato pancakes,” Rachel explained, plopping the tubers she pre-washed onto the counter.

Blaine looked scandalized. “Is there anything not fried at this party? I mean, I’m all for junk food, you know that, but I’d prefer if we didn’t have to forfeit competing at Nationals because the entire group had a collective coronary.”

“It’ll be fine, it’s all in moderation,” Rachel rebuffed. “It’s not like you eat them every day. Besides, we’ll also be making apple sauce. And not that kind in the jar; that’s brown mush. Real applesauce is pink and I refuse to eat anything else.” She picked up an apron and tied it quickly around her waist. “Enough chit chat, we’ve got a lot of work to do and not a lot of time in which to do it’.” Rachel pulled out her grandmother’s [Foley food mill](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_mill). “I’ve already cooked the apples, we just have to make the sauce. We put the apples in and stir. Finn, you’ve got strong arms, how about you give it a whirl.” She handed the device to her boyfriend, scooping the drooping apple bits into the basin.

“ _I_ don’t have any problems with fried potatoes,” Kurt informed her. “Can I help with that?”

“I never said I had a _problem_ with fried potatoes,” Blaine muttered under his breath as he picked up one of the other aprons Rachel had laid out as Kurt kissed him fondly on the cheek. The three got to work shredding potatoes, placing them in a cold water bath to stay fresh as they worked on the onions and beat the eggs. Rachel instructed them to squeeze the liquid out of the potato bits (a job they recruited Finn to help with) before combining everything and the spices. Then they poured oil into the pan, heating it just enough before carefully plopping the sloppy parties into the bubbling oil to sizzle away happily.

“So what is with all the oil again?” Blaine asked, eyeing the pan warily as Kurt flipped the first batch onto the uncooked side.

“It’s to commemorate the oil that burned for eight days in the Temple after the Jews rose up against the Greeks.” Rachel explained. When that just earned her more confused looks, she went into an abbreviated retelling of the story, trying not to be too irritated even though she was almost positive that she had explained this to everyone before at some point. But once she explained everything, they actually seemed pretty interested and started questions that she honestly didn’t know the answer to, so she just kind of responded the best she could as they plopped latke after latke out of the frying pan and onto a wire rack resting on a bed of paper towels.

“Okay, so the food’s ready, everyone should be here soon,” Rachel announced, grabbing her family’s silver menorah from the counter and started securing that night’s candles by melting the bottom a little before placing it in the holder. She was glad that she scheduled this little soiree for the last night; it was always more impressive when all the candles were lit.

“I know what that is! It’s a menorah!” Finn exclaimed. Rachel couldn’t help but smile a little at his enthusiasm. For all that he still didn’t get and probably never would, he had come so far from when they first started dating. Back when he had his Grilled Cheesus epiphany she remembered insisting that she wanted to raise her children Jewish and at that point a part of her worried that would be an issue if they were meant to be, if they would last past the bounds of high school. Now...now she knew that even if Finn would never convert like her Dad did, it would be okay. He was willing to learn and be a part of the celebration because he knew what it meant to her. Rachel decided that she should try to include him in more of these things; she made a mental note of asking her dads if she could invite him to the Passover seder in the spring.

“You’re half right,” Rachel corrected, feeling a little guilty as Finn’s face fell dramatically. “I mean, that’s what most people know it as so you’re not wrong. But technically a menorah is actually a candelabra with seven candles. The special one we use for this holiday is a Chanukiah.”

Finn looked at her in confusion, but he looked more intrigued than anything else. “Why are there so many words for things?”

Rachel shrugged. “I think it’s just supposed to be more specific.”

“Cool!” Finn replied as the doorbell rang. “I’ll get that.”

“Thanks, Finn,” Rachel said, smiling as he pressed a soft kiss to her cheek before going to answer the door.

Over the course of the next half hour, the whole Glee club filtered into her house, munching on the snacks they had set up and getting settled in the basement. Once everyone arrived, Rachel stepped onto the stage, clinking the glass she held to get everyone’s attention, pointedly ignoring some of the eyerolls she received. Just because she knew a thing or two about hosting parties didn’t make her over the top, it just made her sophisticated. And if they couldn’t deal with that, well, no one was forcing them to be there. “Welcome, New Directions, to my humble Chanukah party. I’d like to thank Kurt, Blaine and Finn for their help setting up today, I couldn’t have done it without their help. If you would join me over this way, we will light the candles as the sun has now gone down. If you would like to join in saying the blessing, you can look at the cards you were handed upon your arrival.” She lit the shamash, chanting the prayers as she lit the rest of the candles from left to right, joined by a hesitant group of voices, though Puck’s surety shone through the babble.

Rachel returned the shamash to it’s rightful place, taking a minute to appreciate the sight. “Now if you can all pick up a copy of the song sheets, we can get started with the singing part of the evening,” she continued.

“I don’t think we need songsheets for ‘I Have a Little Dreidel”,” Santana muttered as she gingerly held the hot pink laminated sheet as far from her body as possible.

“That’s a children’s song. It’s all fine and good, but there is so much more to Chanukah music than that song. Now, if you’ll start with number one, Noah, can you come up and help me lead this?”

“Sure thing,” Puck agreed, much to her immense relief, before jumping up on the stage. “We’ll show you goys how it’s done!”

“What did you just call us?” Quinn asked, arms crossed tightly over her chest as she arched an eyebrow at them.

“Chill, I said guys. Now come on, _Lot’s of Latkes_ is a classic. And it’s in English so I don’t want any excuses people. One, two, three, four!”

Once they got started, people really started to get into the music. Rachel figured music was the universal language after all so it had to work. People seemed to be having a good time and Puck seemed relaxed in a way she had never seen him before. Finn was on his nineteenth latke and was locked in a heated argument with Mercedes whether or not applesauce or sour cream was the best condiment, a debate which required the devouring of even more food and a consultation with Tina and Artie. As the candles flickered and slowly melted down, Rachel couldn’t help but think about how lucky she was to be sharing these traditions with her friends, how lucky she was that they seemed to be interested in listening, even if it was only under some duress and for one night only. She didn’t know what her future would bring; she still had to wait to hear back from NYADA after all, but for now she was full of happiness and light.


End file.
